Gentiel the cat and fulfilling her (unbeknowest to her) bucket list of camping on the west coast

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I needed some time to disconnect and relax. A vacation was required after a long and busy tax season!

Gentile has only been with us for a short time and only now just letting us get close to her.  She came to live with us after her long time (13 years)  care giver died.  Just before her care giver died, Gentile, went from place to place and lived a very unsettled time.  So to leave her alone was not an option! To take her someplace else for our trip would be too much a reminder of when she lost her care giver so the only option left was to take her with us.Camping 2013 018

So we packed up the gear, the food, Loki (the dog who lives up to her name), Gentile and headed for a little lake outside of Port Renfrew on the west coast of Vancouver Island named Fairy Lake.

She wasn’t too happy with the car ride at first – too many vet visits in the years gone by – but the quilted bag allowed her to settle with ease on my lap. 

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Once we were unpacked and somewhat settled, we put her on a long leash and she would wonder the site following the sun!

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Gentile and Loki enjoyed relaxing in the sun – Gentile even let Loki get very close as long as Loki was still!

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As much as she enjoyed laying in the sun whenever possible she was very happy to get home and curl up on my desk.Camping 2013 005

My partner and I were happy to accommodate the bucket list of Gentile even though she did not yet know that it was an experience that she wanted and would love.

Winter wallows on my mind – a poem written 1995

winter wallows on my mind

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the summer echoes of children

this day is quite

music provides presence

sunshine touches the inner wall as the

evening sun glides to the horizon

my plants stretch for its touch

to soon its light will fade from their view

winter is on its way

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graciously,

kids do not consider winter

in sunshine filled days

the grasshopper caught in the vent is

entertainment enough for their curiosity

I envy this innocence, this simplicity

far from intrinsic modern living

these children are ageless

winter is on its way

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the beast that builds our burdens wanders by,

stranded, abandoned yet luckily found

in the depths of our hearts

wild passion flows from the desolate

revelry that awakens sleepers

is the unwelcome intrusion

it fades,

winter is on its way

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the wind rustles though the suite

a fort of blankets,

a treasure of fresh fruit

hidden amongst the living room furniture

no safe place out of doors

for theses implements of childhood

today the wind is warm,

gentle,

winter is on its way

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an active neighborhood

by all accounts

planes, trains and automobiles

their melody flow amongst the old apple trees

crows defending what is rightfully theirs bellow resistance

here lie the seeds of decay

a warren for the unwanted, unloved

to absolve society they deface it

then go home

winter is on its way

heron a

yet

beyond winter

lie the seeds of spring

waiting

wanting

needing

cool warmth of the Capricorn sun

chasing shadows from the winter crevices of my mind

Beach view 2 the last morning

 

All photos by Cathy Tremain, Poem by Cathy Tremain